Why the need to defend a modern Clean Energy Project in Ethiopia?

I read with interest the need for a Clean Energy Developer to defend his work and associates from the criticism of those who claim are " Friends of the Earth, Rivers, lakes and the Sun" and not friends of people who are the center of this project.

Imagine the whole civilized world be it in Europe, Asia or America developed their energy by galvanizing the natural resources especially Rivers, Lakes, the Sun and Wind energy. When the world is moving towards clean natural energies, the out of date pseudo environmentalists want to stop clean energy projects in developing countries.

Mind you the rivers of Asia, Europe and Americas continue to be the main source of energy to day. The Hudson River Basins, the Mississauga River Basin and the Colorado River Basin continue to be the source of the new world energy in the Americas. Just imagine where these Friends of International Rivers were when these great projects have been underway for such a long time.

Are these real Friends of the Earth, Rivers, Lakes, the Sun and the Moon or racist saboteurs who want to continue to see the developing world impoverished by their cynical but suicidal campaigns.

The recent famous book entitled "The White man's Buden" by William Easterly, the Director of the World Bank Research Department says it all. According to Mr Easterly, we have spent over 2.3 trillion on forieng aid over the past 50 years for developing countries and we have nothing to show for it. These series of Friends of the Environment are former World Bank and IMF associates trying to milk the money meant for development with their negative campaigns against development.

We need to expose these crocodile tears once for all! The next 50 years will not be sucked by these parasites of development shedding crocodile tears but by gallant small business enterprises that will transform the Billion Poor in the world.

Just imagine, such backward set of organizations trying to block the road to development by their cynical but poisonous netative campaigns!

Just imagine what will happen if we keep quiet. It is time to speak and expose these wolves in sheep skin covering themselves with all assumed environmental credentials which they do not have.

Let us fight misguide negative campaigns with facts and scientific truth and the following article is just doing that.

I look forward to lean from your perspective. The time to speak and be heard is now!

The Gibe III Hydroelectric dam project in Ethiopia is at the center of a dispute between environmental groups and developers.Responding to complaints about the Gibe III hydroelectric dam project in Ethiopia, Salini Costruttori, the Italian hydropower developer behind the project, issued a statement late last week arguing that the project’s critics are opposed to Africa’s development.

“The campaign against the construction of the Gibe plant in Ethiopia is merely another initiative without a technical and scientific basis,” the company said.

“We are dealing with an irresponsible campaign, based on critical statements founded on blatant factual errors and mainly due to elementary arithmetic and technical mistakes,” the statement continued. “These statements have already been assessed and denied by authoritative international organizations, such as the European Investment Bank and the African Development Bank.”

As we noted last week, a coalition of environmental and human rights groups has mounted a campaign to pressure financiers to cease financing for the project, which is already under way. It is slated to become Africa’s second largest hydroelectric dam.

The sides disagree over the accuracy of documents relating to the potential environmental impacts of the Gibe III project — you can see closeup footage of the project under way in the video above — on the Omo River, which flows from the south of Ethiopia into Lake Turkana in Kenya.

After complaints from Friends of Lake Turkana, one of the groups in the coalition, the African Development Bank agreed to undertake a hydrological assessment of the lake.

The report has twice been delayed, said Terri Hathaway, a spokeswoman for one International Rivers, another of the coalition member, in an e-mail message.

”The European Investment Bank has also put out a bid for an environmental impact assessment on Lake Turkana for Gibe III,” Ms. Hathaway added, “so clearly, the issue has not already been properly studied by project developers.”

Two previous environmental impact assessments conducted for the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation – an initial 2006 study and an additional analysis of the downstream effects in 2008 – have been challenged by the Africa Resources Working Group, a collective of academics from Europe, the United States, and East Africa with experience in large hydro-dam and river basin development.

The working group asserted in 2009 that earlier environmental assessments were based on “faulty premises” and that they were “compromised by pervasive omissions, distortions and obfuscation.”

But Salini argued in its statement that the Gibe III project is the “fruit of the work of hundreds of engineers of worldwide renown in the sector and that thousands of technicians and workers of different nationalities are involved in the project, which has been submitted for approval by authoritative Ethiopian and international organizations.”

The company also said it would “continue to defend its image from further unmotivated and defamatory attacks, which are causing serious damage not only to the company and the dignity of its technicians and workers, but also, especially, to the development of the Horn of Africa.”E-mail This PrintShareTwitterSign in to RecommendCommerce, Conventional Energy, Efficiency, Energy Business, Energy Economics, Energy Politics, Environmental Politics, General Business, Government Policy, Health and Safety, The Environment, conservation, environmental impact statement, ethiopia, gibe iii, hydropower, omo riverRelated Posts

I agree. This compaign by the fringe "green environmental" groups is not well-founded and full of far-fetched assumptions. Even if we are to believe the worst case scenario they are pushing, the positive impact of this project far outweighs it. The 1800 MW from this dam will bring more economic transformation than all the western handout given to Ethiopia so far.

Once this dam is complete, 90 percent of Ethiopia that is not now electrified will get electricity and be brought into the modern age. No more blackouts. No more power rationing. No more factory closings. Of course, these groups can't allow such development on the African Continent--no way jose!

They will fight to death to cut funding to this partially complete dam and hold 82 million poor Ethiopians hostage because they feel the livelihood of 300,000 Omo tribesmen along the omo river and Lake Turkana may be affected somewhat. What they conveniently forget to point out is that the Ethiopian Government has already prepared a mitigation and massive community-centred development for these tribes that will be rolled as soon as the Dam is completed in 2013.

The policy implication of International Rivers’ position is that Ethiopia should stay as underdeveloped and a beggar. This way of thinking comes from a neo-colonialist mentality.

Ethiopia is the second most populous nation in Africa with over 80 million people. Only about 2 percent of this population gets electricity, usually for three to four hours per day. The rest – about 78, 400,000 – do not get any type of electricity at all. If you do not have electricity, forget industrialization, you do not even have tap water. As a result, millions of people are dying from water related diseases per year. Besides, if you do not have electricity, you need to resort to other forms of energy to cook food. As a result, large amount of forests are being cleared each day to provide firewood for cooking and similar other things. Consequently, Ethiopia has lost about 97% of its forestry during the last five decades.

As compared to other alternative means of energy, hydro-power energy is environmentally friendly. Besides, Ethiopia has, like any other country, a sovereign right to harness one of its natural resources.

I think International Rivers does not undertake its own environmental impact study. For that matter, I do not think it has the skill, expertise, and resource to undertake such a complex study. As a result, it is just accusing the Ethiopian government without any type of scientific evidence. Besides, I do not think it will care for Ethiopians more than Ethiopians do for their own kind.

It is one thing to ask for an environmental impact study by an independent body, but another thing to ask for the total cancellation of the project, which is insanity.Recommend Recommended by 0 Readers3.Wang SuyaJapanMarch 31st, 20107:45 amPity now money go through to end is unresponsibility. Just the dam is supported by many companies and ignore the consequence of dam to ecosystem is not ethics. This dam should be down by life cycle assessment even it is on the way. If life cycle assessment does not get good result, it is should be stoped. Stop before it finish is wisdom decide. If we want to go sustainable, we should strict on every project to understand whether it is destory our envrionment. LCA is the method.Recommend Recommended by 0 Readers4.AbiyeTokyoMarch 31st, 20107:45 amWhite people, and their NGOs, forever want African nations to remain undeveloped. If all African nations developed, what would white people do with their time that would allow them to feel good about themselves.

This campaign against this dam is bogus. They have their motives and they want the people of Ethiopia to suffer. When its about development in the west, its always okay. But in Africa, they have to treat living nations as if they are studies from their anthropology class.Recommend Recommended by 0 Readers

5.Gecho, Beijing, March 31st, 2010, 7:46 am1. I have yet to come across a single mention on what the people who will be directly affected by the Project actually think (even from Journalists who went to the area and "talked" to the people).

2. Haven't heard strong and fact based argument against the Project.

4. I have yet to come across any Ethiopian who opposes this project (which is quite surprising given the extreme nature of the criticism of these groups).

5. The media seems to be paying more attention to the critics of the project (may be because they are loud). This is clearly seen from the alarming and conclusive titles and the first few paragraphs of most articles on this issue.

Recommend Recommended by 0 ReadersPost a CommentYou must log in to post a comment (Register).Ads by Google what's this?Clean Tech ConsultingTechnology, Engineering, Scale-up, and Investment Due DiligenceGardeniaVentures.com

HEADLINE: Council on Foreign Relations Report Argues United States Should Pursue New Approach to Somalia

INTRO: A new Council on Foreign Relations report calls for the U.S. government to pursue a policy of constructive disengagement in Somaliaand, recommends the international community to adopt a position of neutrality, and to abandon efforts to pick a winner in the war-torn country. VOA`s Horn of Africa reporter Tewelde Tesfagabir spoke with the author of the report.

TEXT: The report, "Somalia: A new Approach", sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations says the odds of Somalia's Transitional Federal Government emerging as an effective body are "extremely poor."

Report author Bronwyn Bruton maintains the current U.S approach is counterproductive and it is encouraging some Somalis to radicalize.

/// BRUTON ACT 1 ///

"Although the TFG in Mogadishu has got some very good people in it, and it has certainly managed to win the hearts and minds of some Somalis, the odds that it will emerge as an effective institution with the critical mass of supporters is very unlikely. If the U.S and the broader international community continues to back the TFG as one side over others, it will perpetuate a military stalemate and this will be very costly to the U.S because it is hurting the Somalia`s population and it is encouraging some Somalis to radicalize."

/// END ACT ///

The report says that the United States should work with United Nations and African Union to promote reform of Somalia's TFG structures to allow it to become a more inclusive governing mechanism.

Bruton believes it is necessary for the United States to make a final push to try to turn the Transitional Federal Government into an institution that can eventually govern Somalia, and suggested the use of a presidential model in a country fractured along clan lines should be abandoned.

/// BRUTON ACT 2 ///

"In my opinion a presidential model is not a very good model for Somalia. Because there are a lot of different factions, and I do not really see any credible national leaders, and I do not think Somaliahad credible leaders for 30 or 40 years. So, what I would recommend is having a technocratic prime minster consisting of a council of leaders including Sheik Sharif."

/// END ACT ///

At a recent briefing U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Johnnie Carson denied recent media reports the United States is leading military efforts to help Somalia's government. He said, "There is no desire to Americanize the conflict in Somalia."

/// REST OPTIONAL ///

In her interview with VOA, Bruton welcomed his comment.

/// BRUTON ACT 3 ///

"I was very gland when Ambassador Carson came out and made this statement, because I think the Somali people need to hear that. It is exactly the right approach to not want to Americanize the conflict. And the U.S should continue to make that point."

/// END ACT ///

Bruton says, the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea poses more danger to the regional instability than the Somali conflict.

/// BRUTON ACT 4 ///

"In a certain way, the conflict of Somalia is tied up in the conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia. Most analysts agree that Eritrea does not really have a stake in Somali conflict, does not have a reason to backal-Shabab over TFG. Eritrea wants to be a bother to Ethiopia, and for that reason Eritrea has allegedly been providing arms to al-Shabab and Hisbul Islam. As to the sanctions on Eritrea, I think diplomatic solutions are what are going to be required here."

/// END ACT ///

Bronwyn Bruton says Eritrea also needs to come around to take a more constructive approach to its neighbors. She says the international community has got to find a way to assist Ethiopia and Eritrea in resolving their dispute and the United States should dissuade Ethiopia from any military action in Somalia in response to possible events in Mogadishu. (SIGNED)NEB/TT/RAE/KBK